Created in 2015, the AMC Network-owned streaming serviceShudderhas, over time, become the top place to find the best in horror. From classicsto originals, toThe Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs, Shudder dominates the genre. With a catalog so vast, it’s hard to keep up with everything Shudder offers. Whatever subgenre you’re into, whether it be zombies, vampires,slashers, or anything in between, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the options.
So let’s cut to the chase. Let’s say you’ve seen all the big-name films and you want to find something maybe you haven’t heard of that you’ve never seen before. What should you watch? There are many films that could be recommended, but Shudder’s most underrated film is a little gem from 1987 calledStage Fright(No, notthe Hitchcock movie from 1950.) This Italian offering is part slasher, partgiallo. It’s heavy not just on gore and death, but plot and suspense, with a creepy masked killer you’ll never forget.
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‘Stage Fright’ Created a Familiar Yet Different Masked Killer
Stage Frightwas helmed by the Italian directorMichele Soavi, in what was his first feature film. He may not have had the experience on his own, but he learned at the feet of the masters, having worked withItalian horror legendsDario ArgentoandLucio Fulci. Soavi didn’t have their name recognition, and with the giallo craze fading, and the American slasher fad bogged down by the likes of Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees, and Freddy Krueger, it was hard for a little film across the ocean to get a lot of attention.
Whether it was a big blockbuster hit or not, it deserves a look. Its killer is the familiar: an escaped madman in a mask slaying those he encounters in gruesome ways. Yet there is more to this than a simple stalk and slash. There is a plot behind the mayhem and elaborate set pieces. This isn’t a guy hacking up horny teenagers in the woods. The killer might seem like a rip-off of the masked madmen of the decade, but he’s his own beast.
What Is ‘Stage Fright’ About?
Stage Frightfollows a group of actors in a theater. They are rehearsing a play about a fictional killer called the Night Owl. Unbeknownst to them, fiction will soon become reality. We meet our final girl, Alicia (Barbara Cupsiti), who sprains her ankle and needs to go to a hospital. It’s there that she and her friend, Betty (Ulrike Schwerk), see a mental patient at the hospital named Irving Wallace (Clain Parker). Wallace used to be an actor too before he went crazy and killed a bunch of people. Now is his chance to escape. This feels a little bit like Michael Myers, but it does things its own way rather than trying to copyHalloween.
The killer sneaks out and gets into Betty’s car and goes with her and Alicia all the way back to the theater. Once Betty is alone, Wallace disposes of her in a bloody fashion with an axe. Alicia finds her friend and help is called. Police stay just outside the theater, but in a moment that admittedly isn’t so realistic, everyone in the play agrees to stay there and continue working. The play’s director, Peter (David Brandon), offers everyone more money, and this gets them to carry on despite the fact that one of their cast mates was literally just sliced up. As with so many slasher movies of the ’80s, you have to overlook the route taken to get these future victims to stay in these dire circumstances. Peter is so driven that he decides to change the play. Why make it about a fictional killer when a real one in Irving Wallace is on the loose? They might think their theater is the safest place to be, but alas, it’s the worst decision of their lives. Wallace is in the theater, now wearing the huge owl head of the Night Owl.
Stage Frighttakes its time, introducing you to the characters, and giving us a setting we’re not used to seeing in a slasher film. A dark theater is something much different than suburban streets or a summer camp. There’s no wondering if the killer’s out there; here, he’s always very close by. That sets up an immense amount of tension. Yes,Stage Frightdoes go blood and guts, but it’s not at the forefront. It works for it, ratcheting up the suspense before the mayhem explodes. Irving Wallace is so fearless and psychotic that he kills one of the troupe members right in front of everyone else.
Is ‘Stage Fright’ a Slasher or a Giallo?
Stage Frightis a film that balances itself between two subgenres of horror, dipping its foot in both, while content to be what it is. Is it aslasher or is it giallo? It’s both. It’s neither. It’s easy to simply call it a giallo film since it’s Italian horror. It does have that giallo touch with the cinematography and that Italian rock score. It’s visually impressive, making you feel like you’re in a giallo. But it’s missing many of the giallo trademarks made so popular by the likes of Argento, Fulci, andMario Bava. Giallos are usually a murder mystery; we don’t see the killer’s face, often it’s just a pair of black gloves.
There’s also usually a detective or a reporter working to find the killer, putting themselves at risk in the process — butStage Frightdoesn’t have that. We meet the killer early on and know exactly who he is. We see him, we know his name and his background. He’s not just a mysterious pair of black gloves. His face is hidden not because he’s trying to protect his identity — that has already been exposed. He wears the mask because he’s now immersed in this production that’s all about him. He’s a character in his own story. With this, there’s no need for a detective or reporter to be on the case, leaving the gang in the theater completely on their own.
Stage Frighttreads into slasher territory as well. The killer is an escaped homicidal maniac wearing a mask, hacking people up with axes, and chainsaws. You can’t get more slasher than that! We even have a final girl in Alicia. To explain how she fits into the classic final girl archetype would spoil the ending, so take my word for it and go check this movie out if you haven’t already.
There was noStage Fright 2. The film doesn’t fall into the slasher stereotype ofa long-running franchise. And while it has a madman in a mask and a final girl, it’s also missing other things. It’s not weighed down by cookie-cutter characters and sex scenes and partying people doing drugs.Stage Frightisn’t a perfect film. The acting is a bit lacking. The premise is far-fetched and stretched thin at points. But it aims to be something paying tribute to, yet existing separately from what came before it. It’s not a giallo. It’s not a slasher. It’s simplyStage Fright.
